Major (Rtd) John Kazoora, husband to Rushenyi County Member of Parliament Noami Kabasharira, has died. The former Bush War fighter passed away earlier today.
Kazoora has been ill for some time after he fell in the bathroom at their home in Bugoloobi. He has been in and of hospitals in Uganda, Israel and Turkey. Late last year, he spent several months in the ICU at Nakasero Hospital.
In August 2012, NRA bush war veteran Major John Kazoora published his memoirs titled “Betrayed by My Leader.” The book offered a scathing critique of President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni, whom Kazoora portrayed as a paranoid leader with a tendency to use and discard his allies.
In the memoir, Kazoora cited several former colleagues whom he claimed President Yoweri Museveni had abandoned. Once a close advisor and assistant to the President during the formative years of the NRM government, Kazoora held influential positions and reported directly to Museveni.
By the time of the book’s release in 2012, Kazoora had become a key figure in the opposition Forum for Democratic Change (FDC), where he served as a founding National Executive Committee (NEC) member and Secretary for Security in Dr. Kizza Besigye’s shadow cabinet. Despite his high profile, Kazoora was repeatedly unsuccessful in his attempts to return to Parliament, having failed three times to win a seat in his home region of Ankole.
Kazoora had previously represented Kashari County in Parliament from 1996 to 2006. In 2006, after Kazoora had opposed the removal of presidential term limits during the 2005 constitutional amendment, Museveni backed Urban Tibamanya, who defeated Kazoora and was later appointed State Minister for Lands.
In the early 2000s, as Museveni signaled his unwillingness to relinquish power after serving two elected terms, tensions between him and Kazoora intensified. They frequently clashed during both public events and closed-door meetings of the Greater Ankole Parliamentary Caucus. Kazoora often accused Museveni of breaking his promise to step down, a commitment that had been enshrined in the original 1995 Constitution.
During one heated meeting at Museveni’s country home in Rwakitura, Kazoora reportedly made such a provocative remark that the President angrily silenced him and vowed to make him “weep like a puppy” in the 2006 Kashari elections. Museveni ultimately had the last laugh as the State House-backed Tibamanya defeated the once-prominent legislator, who had also earned national recognition through his involvement in the Parliamentary Advocacy Forum (PAFO) and vocal opposition to the President’s third term bid.
Their differences soon became irreconcilable. Within FDC circles, Kazoora was considered one of the fiercest critics of Museveni, known for his deep-seated disdain for the President. In a bid to revive his political career, Kazoora later shifted his ambitions from rural Kashari to the more urban and opposition-leaning Mbarara Municipality. However, his efforts were thwarted in the 2011 elections, where reports alleged state-backed military interference in his campaign.
Details to follow.
